We have guests!

Many people actually think that doing an MBA programme is about hitting the books and deep diving into the world of theories and academia. Well, at least, it is not the case in the NUS MBA.

On top of the students we regularly meet, the NUS MBA students would often have the opportunities to mingle with senior executives from various large corporations. And at the beginning of this semester, a handful of NUS MBA students were gladly invited to join some special guests from the land of the rising sun, Japan, in their week long executive education programme. This opportunity gave students such as Kat and myself, a chance to learn about working with people from another culture. And we believe that this truly reflects the global nature of our MBA programme.

During the fulfilling one week programme, the group participated in several activities. Some of these activities included visits to places with rich local culture, learning trip to industrial parks in Batam, student guided market studies and observations, as well as creative thinking and ideas generation workshops. In addition, we also had distinguished lecturers such as Dr Arnold Wasserman and Dr Konno, who gave us valuable tips on innovation and creative thinking.

In all honestly, Kat and myself truly appreciate such opportunities whereby NUS MBA is able to receive guests from the industry. This is not only a chance for students to learn from industry guests, but also an opportunity to work with people with a different cultural backgrounds.

Heritage tour in Singapore 

Sumptuous meal in Batam after a day of site visit 

Site visit to the NEWater and LOHAS (Ground up initiative) 

Creative thinking workshop, with Dr Konno and Dr Chia Ho Beng 

Kat Neo (Singaporean) and Luke Goh (Singaporean)
Part-time student, Class of 2013

Student helping student...

Part 1 – Singapore
“How about visiting Cambodia during recess break? We’ve always wanted to visit Angkor Wat”, is what my husband said to me in early January. I was surprised to hear of vacation plans, because we had made plans twice the previous year and had to cancel in the last minute due to his work schedule. As a result of these experiences, I was arranging to spend the recess break in Laos volunteering for Room To Read (RTR), a non-profit organization I had been volunteering with since moving to Singapore.

I was quickly thinking about the possible negotiations and game theories I had learned during the course of the MBA, so that I could convince my husband to visit Laos instead. I looked up flight tickets to Laos, accommodations and even site visits to schools supported by RTR, but realized that due to a conflict between flight and vacation dates, Laos may not be a possibility. I then used my contingency plan (again something you learn in B School, always have Plan B), and called RTR office in Cambodia to see if they could arrange for a site visit in Cambodia. It worked, I found the Nash Equilibrium! We would go to Cambodia on vacation and for volunteering, a win-win for both of us.

RTR focuses on providing education support via book publication, building schools and libraries and providing scholarship to students in several countries in Asia and Africa. To date, RTR has built 1592 schools and 13,170 libraries and funded 13,726 girl students. They are also one of the most efficient charities with charity navigator rating them with 4 starts since 2006. What drew me the most to RTR was the passion of volunteers, student helping student model and the push to empower and enable rather than simply providing the resources.

In preparing for the site visit to a RTR supported school, I worked with my daughter’s school over the course of the year to make the students and teachers aware of the situation via book reading sessions aimed at generating awareness about the conditions in these developing countries – lack of resources but not enthusiasm and talent. The children benefited from learning about other cultures and realized how lucky they were to have good education and opportunities. The students and teachers were keen to help make a difference. RTRs student helping student program is aimed to do just that. Along with the school’s administration we came up with several pieces of art work and short books which were created by the students to take with me on my site visit.

I then decided to bring in another flavour to the site visit; I hoped to inspire the school children in Cambodia with messages from NUS students and staff about how they benefited from education. I was really enthused by the passion of several NUS students and staff who volunteered their time to tell stories, personal anecdotes and inspirational messages to these students. One staff member related to how he spent time with his kids in the library, some staff members spoke about how they travelled to different countries for education and about their favourite books, a student spoke about how he was determined to provide a better future for his family which suffered from the uncertainties of the farming profession in India and how education helped him achieve this goal, while another student narrated a story about the importance of constantly polishing and improving ones skills and about his passion for Engineering and Mathematics which keeps him going.

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Part 2 - Cambodia
The primary school we were visiting was a 2 hour drive from Siem Reap, as we huddled into the bus which would take us there; I was both nervous and excited. What I saw on my way to the village comforted me somewhat. I noticed that the life style of the people was very similar to a village in India. Something told me that I would be able to connect with the students and the teachers easily.

The library which RTR built was small but teeming with children. They were awaiting our arrival eagerly. As I opened my bag filled with books and art work made by students at my daughter’s school in Singapore, I saw the excitement in their eyes. Even though the books were in English, they connected with the pictures and the text. I asked them what their favourite subjects were, what they liked best about reading and their new library. I read several books to them, one specifically about the importance of reading. I also noticed that several children were so curious that they took the books and huddled in the corner to flip through the pages on their own. Next, I showed them the video we shot at NUS and they awed in wonder when I told them, this is my school and these are my class mates, some are engineers, some businessman...would you like to study here some day? The unanimous answer echoed the room...”YES”. Some students want to be doctors, engineers, business men and politicians. Their enthusiasm was infectious. The RTR representative who accompanied us on the trip told us that the kids had prepared a skit for us and that he would translate for us later. However, the kids did such a good job playing their parts that the story about how a farmer lost his son due to lack of access to proper medical facilities and education, didn’t need any translation. We took a tour around the school where the kids showed us their class rooms and their vegetable garden. Despite the lack of resources at the school (with student teacher ratio of 1:60), they didn’t lack the enthusiasm to learn.

For me and my family Cambodia will always remain a great memory and a humbling experience. Now more than ever I see myself pursuing Part 3 of my plan to raise enough funds to build a school in these deserving areas, with extra zeal and sense of accomplishment.

Sindhura Sunkara (Indian)
Full-time student, Class of 2013

未來的領袖們

入學到現在已經8個月，整個MBA課程剛好過了一半，深深覺得除了紮實的教育和豐富的就業選擇，在這裡認識的朋友將成為未來最寶貴的資產。

上面的照片拍攝於今年3月9日，東南亞企金領域首屈一指的華僑銀行(OCBC)在新加坡市中心舉辦大型說明會，吸引了不同國家超過200名社會人士參與，主辦單位介紹包括消費金融、企業金融與投資銀行在內各個部門所需人才，場面熱鬧非凡。

NUS MBA也有很多同學前來共襄盛舉，圖中後方是來自中國浙江的Kelvin。Kelvin過去曾擔任美國道富銀行分析師與瑞士信貸顧問，過去與他合作分組報告時，他總是能針對商業個案提出獨到見解; 而且由於在新加坡有多年的工作經驗，Kelvin也不吝於分享在求職過程中可能用得上的訣竅和應該避免的錯誤，令人獲益匪淺。

圖左的DK Ha來新加坡之前是Fortune 500大企業－韓國SK集團旗下的原物料交易員，數學好得不得了; 和他一起修的投資課不但充滿樂趣，我們也一起在模擬投資競賽中取得暫居第三名的佳績。分析過程中DK對原物料市場展現的深入理解讓人驚豔，他幽默風趣的談吐也獲得極好的人緣，我想這些都是未來成功企業家必須具備的特質。

其他還有好多同學總是無私地分享知識、讓整個MBA課程增添許多收穫。MBA其實是個寶庫、只可惜只有有限的時間探索。同學當中有集資準備創業的; 有自己在當老闆、念MBA是為了找夥伴的; 這些懷抱知識與夢想的人們齊聚一堂，如果未來有一天擁有資金與技術的同學們擦出火花、一起開創出一番事業，「讓這個世界因為我們、有一點點的不同」，我想一點都不令人驚訝。

應該說…這不正是我們念MBA的原因嗎？

Evan Lin (Taiwanese)
Full-Time student, Class of 2013

Any Given Sunday

One Sunday Akhil, Gaurav and Stefan were going head-to-head with other Asian b-schools in a competition together with Sindhura and Bastiaan. The next, they were getting drenched and ‘rainbow-colored’ with the cohort in Holi Celebration. Who says Sundays are boring?

March 4, 2012
The NUS MBA team flew nearly five hours Singapore-Hyderabad route, to the Indian School of Business for the regional final of the Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC) 2012. The VCIC as described in the competition’s info page is a ‘reverse business plan’ competition. Instead of the usual student teams presenting their biz proposals, in VCIC, the venture capitalists become the judges, actual entrepreneurs present their plans, and the MBA teams place themselves in the role of the VCs and make assessments of the market potential and strategies of the entrepreneurs’ b-plans.

NUS bested other participants (CEIBS, HKUST, NTU, ISB, IIM-Bangalore) with the judges describing the team as having behaved like ‘professional VCs all throughout’. The win earned them a spot in the international finals to be held next month in the University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School. As the sole Asian representative, the team will be competing with the US and Europe regional winners- Cornell, Wharton, UC Berkley, Michigan, Georgetown, Colorado, Wake Forest, and IESE. Best of luck team! As Ashim puts it, “Come back with your shields.. or ON IT!”

Team NUS @ the Regional Finals of VCIC 2012

Photo credits: Stefan Walgram (Full-time student, Class of 2013)

March 11, 2012
What’s the best word to describe Holi? Crazy? Animated? Boisterous? Try all of the above and more!

Holi, the Festival of Colors, comes from India (observed mostly in the northern region) and celebrates the coming of a new season, a time to go anew and forget past troubles. Last Sunday, the b-school premises turned into a playground of sorts as the MBAers got into the Holi spirit of merrymaking. Colored powder, water guns/pumps, and Indian sweets were the order of the day with Hindi songs playing in the background and some ‘Carlsberg shampoo’ on the side for the lucky ones. The pictures below show the fun and craziness!

Photo credits: Lee Vivas (Full-time student, Class of 2013)

"Jailbreak"





Photo credits: Krishan Kant (Full-time student, Class of 2013)



Photo credits: Krishan Kant (Full-time student, Class of 2013)



Photo credits: Krishan Kant (Full-time student, Class of 2013)



Photo credits: Lee Vivas (Full-time student, Class of 2013)

Photo credits: Lee Vivas (Full-time student, Class of 2013)

Sunday in b-school? (Or every day for that matter!) It defies predictability. It's about how YOU, WE want it to be. Each day better than the one before.

 

Carissa Caparas (Filipino)
Full-Time student, Class of 2013

She said, he said…a Q&A about that week in L.A.

One afternoon, in between classes and group discussions, I managed to sit down with Ria and KK - she’s the charming ex-co and he’s the easy-going president of the Student Activities Club. Together, their enthusiasm and outgoing personalities embody the epitome of student activities.  What better way to showcase this than through participating in the recent NUS study trip.

Both of them decided to join the study trip for the opportunity to bond with their fellow cohorts. Ria’s reasons also include visiting the top US companies and meeting with the CEOs, plus the fact that she remembers the study trip as one of the highlights in NUS while she was applying for the program.  As for KK, he’s never been to America and the initial list of the companies to be visited excited him.  Ria and KK spoke to me candidly about what happened during the study trip. Here are their stories (or what I chose to disclose, anyway):

There were 16 other students who took the flight with Ria and KK to Los Angeles, California on board Korean Air. Leave it to the girls to start the adventure before even arriving at their destination - they went shopping during the brief stopover in Seoul (how they managed to shop and not miss the flight just goes to show how good their time management skills are).

While their group visited several companies such as Gilead, Target, and Port of Long Beach, the highlights of their trip involved the visits to the following companies:

Buffalo Studios, which is a start-up company behind the popular game in Facebook called Bingo Blitz. It had 5 employees last year, and now has 50+ employees;

TCW, an asset management firm, where they met with a very jovial CEO. Their group met with the company heads in the boardroom, which has French and American flags. Each of their names was printed out, and this gesture was only one of the many that made them feel so welcome;

Princess Cruises, where they had lunch with the entire management team. The team took the time to discuss the company’s strategies with them. The CEO actually quizzed them on accounting (they answered all questions correctly, of course);

Zodiac, an aerospace firm, where 100 people (representing the entire office) were waiting at the reception area for them and clapped when their group finally arrived (they were 15 minutes late due to traffic). Ria and KK were both in agreement that this visit was the most heart-warming. They also visited the UCLA campus, where NUS has a joint executive MBA program with, and went on a VIP tour of the facilities in Warner Brother Studios.

During their last night, they joined the alumni from the NUS-UCLA executive program for a formal networking dinner at a restaurant in Venice Beach (which, contrary to what the place implies, did not provide them a view of the beach).

Of course, the trip didn’t end without the group having fun. During the day of their arrival, before embarking on the company visits, the 6 girls (and a guy) rented a car and drove to Cabazon (Desert Hills) where they went shopping at a premium outlet, notwithstanding the long flight and jetlag. The best shopper turned out to be the one guy in the group, who knew the best discount stores. They gave new meaning to the phrase, “shop ‘til they drop” for they were there until closing time at 9pm. As expected, they couldn’t fit all their shopping bags inside the truck.

Meanwhile, KK and a few of the guys went to Las Vegas for a day (KK practiced playing poker in Ipad beforehand, but he still lost $100). They then watched a show in Planet Hollywood (here is where I plead the Fifth and avail of the saying – what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas).

One of the highlights of the study trip was KK’s birthday, which they celebrated at a fancy Italian restaurant, where the waiter gave them free shots. They then moved on to an Irish pub in Hollywood Boulevard and counted the hours down to KK’s birthday.

As their parting words, here’s what Ria and KK have to say to the incoming NUS MBA students:

Ria - Take advantage of the opportunity. Even if the trip only lasted for a week, my experiences were rich, rewarding and unforgettable. Seldom do you get the opportunity to visit top US companies and meet the management team behind these firms. The study trip is definitely one of the highlights of the MBA for the learning experience is different from the classroom setting.

KK – The study trip meant meeting real business leaders; a lot of times they talked about what they’re experiencing in real life, where you realize the application of the concepts you learned from business school. It’s a great bonding time with your fellow cohorts – you make good friends.

Postscript: My sincerest thanks goes to Ria and KK who spent the time to tell me their many stories and who provided me with photos (thank you for the great photo collages, KK!). 

Charisse Cruz (Filipino)

Full-Time student, Class of 2013